Course title:
DECORATIVE DRAWING AND GRAPHIC DESIGN

Semester / Year of study: semester I, III-rd year of study program Wooden Products Engineering

Course status: compulsory

Objectives:
           The product conception and the furniture design suppose to work with structures, volumes and elements. For this purpose, the discipline promotes the possibility to accomplish concepts, knowledge and practice development in graphic design, in order to enhance the skills and work methods necessary to express the three - dimensional space and the objects which compose it. The application themes develop those skills of perceiving and expressing the shape of the objects, of organizing the three - dimensional space, of issuing concepts and new ideas in furniture field, no matter of its type.

Contents:
A. CONVENTIONAL REPRESENTATIONS
A1. Orthogonal cylindrical projection
           A1.1. Projection
              Projection definition:
              1. Orthogonal projection of an object on a vertical plane - named front view.
              2. Orthogonal projection of an object on a horizontal plane - named top view.
              3. Orthogonal projection of an object on a side plane - named side view.
           A1.2. Orthogonal projection of a decoration image.
              Stylization.
              Shape representation through 2 shade tones (black&white).
              Composing of decorative elements on a plane surface.
              Techniques of graphic design: pencil, colored pencil, china-ink, tempera colors, collage.
A2. Oblique - axonometric cylindrique projections
           A2.1. Geometric axonometry.
           A2.2. Cavalier axonometric (military).

B. THREE - DIMENSIONAL REPRESENTATION
B1. Open representation, by observation.
           Drawing in pencil, method of representation through several steps:
           1. Page organizing.
           2. Construction of independent shapes.
           3. Defining of images, component parts and overview shapes.
           4. Shading.
B2. Linear perspective on plane.
           B2.1. Perspective system and its elements.
           B2.2. Visual field, elements and characteristics.
           B2.3. Mechanism of the linear perspective, on vertical plane.
B3. Methods of constructing corner linear perspective, on vertical plane.
           B3.1. Dependent - descriptive perspective.
             a) vanishing points F; F90.
             b) points O; P.
             c) points O; F or O; F90.
             d) points P; F or P; F90.
           B3.2. Open/direct perspective, description and characteristics.
             Lines and planes in perspective presentation.
             Definition and construction of vanishing points F; F90; F45; Fn/m (diagonal).
             Definition and construction of plotted points M; M90.
             Definition and construction of distance points Dd; Ds; D+; D-.
             Transposition of the real sizes on the vertical line (heights).
           B3.3. Construction in corner perspective of the circle placed on the horizontal plane.
           B3.4. The corner perspective of the geometrical solids placed on a squares modular network.
C. SHADOW AND LIGHT IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PERSPECTIVE
C1. Shadow generated by sun or artificial light.
C2. Point shadow.
C3. Line shadow.
C4. Shadow of simple geometrical solids.

           The content of the course is assimilated through the exercises and projects launched as practical applications within the laboratory hours.

Exercises and practical applications:
   Orthogonal cylindrical projection - 5 exercises:
          - projection of particular planes;
          - projection of certain planes;
          - projection of simple geometrical solids;
          - projection of compound geometrical solids;
          - projection of a structure composed of volumes shapes.
   Representation of a spatial axonometric structure.
   Representation of a spatial structure in cavalier projection.
   Representation of a chair by observation - open shading drawing.
   Dependent linear perspective, with two vanishing points - construction of a geometrical solid using three methods: F-F90; F-0; F-P.
   Linear perspective with two vanishing points of the geometrical solids placed on a modular squares network.
   Analytic and graphic analysis of a shape as decorative element: stylization, plastic expression, composition of decorative element.
 

History:
           Out of the historical perspective, this discipline was integrated into the educatinal system in 1983, by the formation of the first student groups trained in furniture design. The discipline was taught during 1983-2001 by Lecturer Roxana RENEL, architect. Beginning with 2001 it is provided by Asist. Ioan MUSCU, licensed designer.
           This discipline proposes the enriching of the visual language specific to the technique and engineering field with methods and concepts used in visual arts. To assimilate this knowledge requests from the student site a certain effort in a specific activity, other than an engineering one. In order to achieve some performances, the theoretical basic notions of this discipline are completed with lectures and analyses of the works elaborated by specialists in the field or from the teacher's experience.

Present Heads of Discipline:
           Assist. designer Ioan MUSCU, graduated in design - 1980 - Institute of Plastic Arts, Academy of Visual Arts "Ion Andreescu" from Cluj.

Perspectives and Opportunities:
           The methodology and the practice characteristics of the discipline impose an attentive structuring and a continuous adaptation of the content to the actual methods of creation and design.
           A future development means the following:
           - assimilating of the content by inter-disciplinary correlation: 2D representation -3D modeling- pattern.
           - completing of a product concept by approaching stylistic and expressivity problems.
           - enriching of the visual content of the projects and research scientific works.